Why The Atlanta Braves Path to the Playoffs Is Much Harder Than You Think

As the season rolls along for the Atlanta Braves, things have gotten off to an improbable start. Despite having both Ronald Acuna Jr. and Spencer Strider back from injury, the Braves have continued to struggle with a 27-31 record as Atlanta continues to struggle to get to .500. However, there remains high hopes for Atlanta to make the postseason, which is only looking less and less likely.

*Stats as of June 3rd

Braves Have a Hard Path to the Postseason

 The Braves’ Problems Are Very Evident

The first thing that needs to be identified for Atlanta is its issues. To begin winning, which is exactly what Atlanta needs, the Braves must address certain issues. First, Atlanta’s offense has been stalled by underperformance from its star players. For instance, Michael Harris II, who held big expectations coming into the season, has just three home runs with a poor .233 average. In 2022, Harris II won the NL Rookie of the Year, causing many to expect stardom from Harris.

However, the last few seasons haven’t been all that good for Harris, with 2025 being his worst year yet. There is also Ozzie Albies, who himself has just six home runs and a .235 average after a career bad year in 2024. Since his 33-homer, 109-RBI season in 2023, Albies hasn’t look good at all. To make matters worse, Matt Olson hasn’t looked excellent either despite being on pace for 34 homers (That’s better than 29, yet not close to 54).

Olson is batting .239 with just 31 RBI’s. Marcell Ozuna has just 9 home runs after having back-to-back 40 homer seasons. Nick Allen is useless. In left field, there remains no answers. So yeah, Atlanta has some issues.

Atlanta Is Need of a Win Streak Soon

Okay, let’s be frank. Atlanta has very little chance of winning of the NL East. Even if Atlanta somehow got close, the New York Mets or Philadelphia Phillies would likely pull away anyway. Atlanta is 10 games behind an excellent Mets team and still quite far behind the Phillies. At the moment, Atlanta would be eaten alive by the Mets and only worsen the NL East situation.

As for the Wild Card race, a much more realistic idea for Atlanta, Atlanta is in need of winning soon. Of course, Atlanta is just 5.5 games back in the Wild Card race with plenty of time in the season remaining. However, the competition is very stiff. First, in the NL West, there are the San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, and Arizona Diamondbacks. In the NL East and Central, the teams include the Phillies, Milwaukee Brewers, Cincinnati Reds, Washington Nationals, and St. Louis Cardinals. All of these teams mentioned are ahead of the Braves in the Wild Card race.

Atlanta Can Do It, But It Must Be Done Soon

Atlanta can come back from the brink and secure a spot. However, as mentioned before, many of those teams ahead of Atlanta are very good. As a result, a surge from Atlanta is needed soon in order to keep up with these great teams. At this point last season, the Mets were 22-33. However, things went so well for New York that they came all the way back to have a 38-38 record and eventually would finish 89-73.

The problem is that at this point last season, the NL Wild Card teams were all very mediocre, with some even being negative and retaining a spot. In 2025, it is not the same story. The Braves are a great baseball team. However, their record doesn’t show such a thing as underperforming stars and just overall bad play has hindered them. A comeback is possible, but it must happen soon in order for Atlanta to have a chance.